The God Dilemma
by The Otherworlder
Summary: AllSpark, hidden inside Sam, searched for a new vessel with power, memory, and immortality enough to sustain it. It found Saori Kido. What followed was a tale of impossible vows, conflicting responsibilities, and the eternal dilemma: to be or not to be.
1. In Which Two Gold Saints Found A Robot

**AN: So I am finally back with a new story. I have had this crossover in mind since the 2007 Transformers movie and only got to writing it about now. I do want to finish this one. I know what I am writing about and I sorta have the plot all figured. I really do want it done. But I am only here to test waters. **

**Reviews are GREAT HELP! Let me know if you like it, hate it, enjoyed it, got bored because of it, etc etc. I need advice and I don't even mind flames, lol. **

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**1. In Which Two Gold Saints Found a Robot**

Our story began in a bright afternoon in Las Vegas.

No, no gambling, nor gang, nor Grissom; the story started in a small cafe, with two old friends meeting over a cup of tea.

"Well, what is it that you wished to discuss?" Aioros took another sip of his tea, eying the young man before him.

Mu looked just the tiny bit nervous, even though such a look was very uncharacteristic of the ever calm and collected Aries saint. Aye, but Aries wasn't always calm and collected.

_He used to be a little rascal_ , Aioros remembered fondly. Before the age of seven, Mu was probably the most unruly and headstrong child in Sanctuary, full of burning passion and boundless energy, always ready to get into trouble, a true Aries. Somehow in those fourteen years he had missed, little rascal became a hermit, a mystical sage hidden away from the clashes of the mundane world (but still somehow gets dragged right back into the worst of clashes). Even after the Holy War and all the religious, mythical glories it entailed wrapped up for good, Mu still seemed to be drawn towards the mystical and the mysterious. Like now.

Mu called him up two nights ago, inviting him over and saying that his help is desired. Mu had been very vague on the phone, saying nothing more than "an interesting project". Aioros sighed silently. He did not like the vagueness of this "project" at all. Even as a hermit, Mu still had that old tendency of finding strange troubles.

"This project I have in mind, I think it will lead to shocking new discoveries," Mu said, perfectly serene as always, but the light in his eyes seemed to be mixed excitement and uncertainty, "But it is rather an illegal project, and I do need some assistance. I want to teleport something of significant size."

Aioros raised an eyebrow. Strange that Mu came to him to ask help in transporting object. While teleportation and telekinesis were standard techniques to master for any gold saint, it really wasn't his forte. Mu himself was the greatest psychokinetic except Master Shion among them all, and Shaka, Saga and Kanon all have significant skills in that area. Somehow, Mu came to him. "With the two of us, I am sure there would be no problem, but why did you not go to Shaka?" He said, "Also, what of the rather illegal part? I do hope you have more elaborations."

"Shaka would not mind helping, I am sure, but only you have a property in Nevada, specifically, an airplane hangar," Mu said with a little smile, "So you see the...size of the project. As for the illegal part, it's not harmful, I would say; it's more like stealing from Area-51 type of illegal. But I have good reasons."

Aioros frowned a little. "The ancient edict still stands, Mu."

If there was a single edict in Sanctuary that stood above all others, it was that solemn oath,_ thou shall not interfere. _No miracle cures during pandemics, no divine ceasefires for wars, no propping up and casting down of kingdoms, _nothing of those kinds_. It was the single most laden vow because their lady Athena herself swore before the River Styx, "Mankind shall pave its own way; I shall not interfere nor impress upon them my designs. Should I betray my words, let me sink to the lowest pit of Tartarus." Sure, now that they live in this secular world as ordinary men, no doubt they have become part of its history, but stealing from Area 51 using their powers… That seemed a certain transgression against the ancient code.

"I am not planning to steal American technology and sell it to the Taliban, I assure you," Mu's voice was still smooth and gentle, as if he wasn't really attempting dark humor. He paused a long while, before saying quietly, "Something extraordinary is going on, and it is extraordinary even by our standard. Perhaps I should just show you, Aioros."

Aioros nodded, though still not completely at ease with the idea. But Mu quickly launched himself; with a crisp professionalism, he unfolded a map in front of them, and started marking with a pen. "From where we are right now, we go there, there, there, and there," He said, "This little corner of Area 51."

Aioros studied the map a while, before looking back at Mu, whose face seemed to gain a strange gravity. Aioros frowned again, but only nodded. They headed out of the cafe and walked over to the back alley, where parked cars and large dumpsters hid them from the eyes of passer-bys. A soft golden light lit the alleyway momentarily, and they both vanished. Nevada was by no means small, and when they finally reached that corner of Area 51, both were eager for a breath of air on solid ground. Mu shaded his eyes with his hand and looked around quickly, then pointed at a small hill.

"There."

While they were walking towards the hill, Aioros asked curiously, "How is it that you discovered this... project of yours to begin with? You can't be just taking a walk out here."

Mu laughed. "Giving Kiki some teleportation exercises," He answered with ample amusement, "He is young, and out of training, so there were some serious mishaps and even I was lost for a while."

Aioros looked to the hill again, still bemused. "And then?"

"And then I felt it," Mu said, suddenly grave again, "Do you?"

Aioros was silent for a while, then shook his head. Mu shrugged and walked on silently, Aioros following at his side. A couple minutes later they were standing at the foot of the hill. It was a earthen mound perhaps twenty feet in diameter, and just over ten feet tall. It ware yellow and bare, except for a small groove of green yew trees at the top of the hill.

"This looks like a tomb," Aioros said, expression suddenly grim, "This _feels_ like a tomb."

"You feel it now, Aioros?"

Aioros nodded gravely and slowly. He felt it, however faint it hummed. Hidden beneath this mound was _death, _and a hint of the life that once was: it was a warrior's life; it spoke of power, struggle and an end it would not accept, a desperate cry of 'not yet!'

"This is a extraordinarily large tomb for someone who was not an ancient, vainglorious king," Aioros said dryly.

Mu shot him a look, and lifted both of his hands. The Aries saint glowed pure gold like a miniature moon, and at his command the earthen mound before him split open right down the center, shifting and rumbling, before finally revealing the mass underneath.

There, lying beneath the scorching Nevada sun, was an enormous man-shaped machine, silver and black, gleaming like a sword. For something that was once clearly alive, it seemed so mechanical, composed of pure metal and fiberglass. Yet for something so definitively inorganic, it looked so... expressive. Those powerful arms and legs, that gleaming chestplate, and that strangely humane face and those large, dull eyes. Once they must have been glowing with pure life.

"By Athena," Aioros whispered.

"When I first saw it, I thought I must have been watching too much cartoon with Kiki," Mu said with a matter-of-fact air, voice flat.

Aioros gave his companion an exasperated look; really, now was _such _a bad time for black humor. He drew a breath, quietly pondered a few moments, before saying, "He had a soldier's burial."

"Aye, he did."

They both stayed silent for a long while, before Mu started speaking again, slowly, carefully, and very deliberately. "I want to move him to your property, Aioros. I think, I want to try... perhaps I can save him."


	2. In Which the AllSpark Wanted A Lady

**2. In Which the ****AllSpark**** Wanted a Lady**

The God forsaken AllSpark wanted that chick, badly, Sam Witwicky just knew it. Except there was nothing he could do other than praying: _please, venerable __AllSpark__, just go back to sleep and stop screwing up my life_.

Seriously, was some normalcy just way too much to ask?

For a while, it seemed that he had almost recovered what could resemble a normal life. His injuries from Mission city were healed, his PTSD (if it indeed ever existed) was talked out with a psychiatrist, his issues with the AllSpark dealt with, and he even went on to college, the famous Ivy-leaguer Princeton at that too. Granted, his alien-friend-turned-Camaro was still sitting in the school parking lot, and he had taken up _international relations _as his major at the urging of both Defense Secretary Keller and Bumblebee, but these things were still within the realm of grudgingly acceptable. The AllSpark being restless and desperately in search of a gorgeous human female, however, just reeked of trouble.

What could a God-like, life-giving, disembodied bundle of energy and knowledge possibly want with a human female? You don't have hormones! Sam thought irritably.

After the battle at Mission City, Sam had been living in total nightmares for two straight months. Strange alien symbols flashed before his eyes day in and day out, his arms would glow blue on and off, and there was this once, when he slapped his toaster on an especially grating morning, the said toaster sprang to life. He was stuck in Autobots base for a while, in an alien intensive care unit, pretty much. Ratchet kindly explained to him that the AllSpark didn't seem to be destroyed; instead, the majority of the… AllSpark stuff was transferred into his body. In fact, Sam had become the new, walking, talking, breathing AllSpark. This really didn't sound like rainbow and unicorns to Sam, but strangely, the AllSpark quieted itself after two months and had been behaving for a while.

It seemed okay, that is, until now.

Right now Sam was restless, frizzing with energy (literally discharging electric sparks too), and simply _dying_ to be somewhere near that golden-haired nymph in his social theories class.

It really wasn't him! Granted, the famous Saori Kido of sociology department was unbelievably beautiful, but he had Mikaela already, he was in love and he did _not_ want another woman! It was only the alien God-like thing inhabiting his body kept telling him: this woman could help the autobots; she could help the AllSpark.

Despite Sam's deep-seated suspicions of the AllSpark and its schemes, he still googled up this goddess hailed as the single most eligible as well as the most impossible-to-get bachelorette of Princeton campus. And his mouth was left hanging for quite a few minutes from the results returned. Saori Kido: nineteen years old, decidedly Greek but adopted by a Japanese billionaire when she was a baby, hence the Japanese name. She was the main stake holder of Kido foundation, a gargantuan corporation that produces all sorts of consumer electronics from gaming consoles to freezers. Other than the fabulously rich part, she was also surrounded by a slew of most bizarre gossips. Tabloid reports have linked her to Italian mafia, to Hellenistic pagan movement, to Chinese communist government, to human bioengineering projects, and the list could go on. _This belle is every conspiracy theorist's fantasy,_ Sam thought wonderingly.

But, how could a woman like this help the autobots?

He tried asking Ratchet once, over a casual chit chat about cars. He tried to raise the question as a natural part of the conversation, saying, "So do you think any machinery or electronics we've got here on Earth can really help you guys? Like would our weapons do well as replacement parts for your cannons, or our engines for your parts, something like that?"

Ratchet grumbled. "Wouldn't I be happy if that were true," He said unhappily, "Then I wouldn't be so desperate to conjure up makeshift everything. Sure, a large machinery manufacturer would be helpful, only if I am there to tell them what to make though. But Prime isn't quite ready to share all of our technology yet; your people have serious faction problems and we do not wish for our technology to play a part in your war."

If that was the case, how the heck can Saori Kido be useful? Sure, she's got this fabulous technology corporation, but the autobots could totally have Ford or Boeing or Intel at their disposal if they are willing. Sam pondered this a while longer, and decided to ignore the AllSpark. He made an effort to avoid the golden-haired nymph, and was quite successful at it (actually, getting her attention would probably be harder).

Until today.

They were both late for social theories, and other students were already finished finding a partner for the religious institution observation paper. This meant…Sam desperately looked around the classroom, and then looked at his graduate student instructor. The young man flashed him a smile and said, "Well Sam, Saori actually just got here too and still needs a partner. I guess you two will need to work together." With that, the grad student gave him another little wink.

Sam made some disgruntled noises in the back of his throat. He watched helplessly as Saori Kido stood up, walked over, pulled up a chair and sat down beside him. "Hi, I am Saori, nice to meet you," She said coolly, holding out her hand, "It's Samuel Witwicky, right?"

Sam hastily took her hand and nodded. "Yeah, Sam is fine though."

To be honest, he was a little surprised that _the_ bachelorette of Princeton actually knew his full name. Up close, he saw that Saori really was as beautiful as the rumors had it, and much more stunning in person than on tabloid photos. She was leaning on the short side, five feet five at most, very small but rather well endowed, wrapped in a white dress that really made her look like a Greek goddess from the paintings. Her face was smooth like porcelain, with well defined features and a pair of flashing grey-blue eyes. Her hair was long and hanging all the way to her thigh; the coloring would have been called strawberry blond, but somehow, all Sam could think of was the gleaming edge of a well polished brass blade. Yeah, that's it, her entire person has this Xena, warrior princess feel to it. Not that she was built and tanned and wild in anyway, but she was fierce and mighty despite her slender, milky-white body, and she had this virgin-goddess thing going on. Something men do not go for. _Mikaela has more sex appeal in one __pinky__ finger than this woman has in her whole body, _Sam decided glumly.

Yet, he was really reluctant to let her hand go.

When the handshake grew unnecessarily and unusually long, Saori smiled again, and jerked her hand back. Sam just stared at their hands. He could swear he saw blue sparks of electricity where their hands touched.

Not good, not good at all.

_Frag it_, Sam mused darkly, _Damn social theories; damn the __AllSpark__!_


	3. In Which A Generator Restarted

**3. In Which** **Human Blood (Re)started a Generator**

The repair of the dead robot was underway, carefully, so very slowly, and with much uncertainty.

After Mu and Aioros finally shifted this pile of metal into Aioros's family property near Las Vegas, both were quite exhausted and ready to sleep. After they rested it was a new week again; they had ordinary life to attend to, jobs, assignments, bills and such. So it was a week later, when weekend rolled around again, that they finally returned to the dead robot.

They first surveyed the machine entirely, looking at all the apparent damages. It seemed that the thing was ripped into two pieces by an unimaginable stretch force at some point. The surface plates at the break were all highly deformed. The skeletal support structure, basically a bundle of spine-like rods, composed of short segments jointed together by massive steel balls, showed cleaner breaks, and apparently one steel ball was missing. Beneath the plates there was a mass of snapped pipes, charred wires and shattered valves and pumps.

"Strange," Mu murmured with a wince, "And quite brutal."

He moved up a little, trying to lift the creature's chest plate, as if he knew the vital parts would be there. Aioros pulled his arm and said, "Do not move any part yet; wait for me."

He left and came back with a digital SLR camera, short lens, multiple flashes, quite the professional gizmo. He began snapping photos methodically, first the breaks at the "waist" area, then moving up and down to get the positions and constructions of various plates and part. Mu looked at his companion with a little amusement; Aioros has slipped into his professional mode so easily and effortlessly, almost as if this was the only profession he had ever known. Mu could not help but asking with a smile, "So, as a crime scene investigator, what would you say is the COD?"

Aioros shot young Aries a wry glance, before saying, "Exsanguination."

"Oh?" Mu looked startled; he truly wasn't expecting a real answer. "Exsanguination? Why?"

"Either that, or a snapped spine," Aioros pointed, "However, broken spine isn't usually a COD for humans."

"But what is exsanguination for a machine? Out of fuel or coolant?" Mu hazarded.

Aioros frowned again, saying, "Fuel and coolant should be easily replaceable. Indeed, maybe this is way above our heads." He paused, looking at his camera, and then he said, "I think I have enough photos. Go ahead; lift the chest plate."

It took Mu a good half-hour of patient tapping and listening to map out the approximate chest cavity area and find all the bolts that secured the chest plate. Loosening all the nuts and bolts also proved a time-consuming ordeal, for they were fitted together with such precise strength. Lifting the metal plate was actually the easier part, despite the fact it probably weighed half a ton. Once the plate was lifted, they saw a mass of tubing and wiring underneath, multi-colored and quite difficult for the human eye to follow.

Aioros was snapping photos once more, and Mu was carefully feeling the tubes. "Black, coolant; grey, fuel; white is most likely for water or some kind of chemical solutions," He said at length, "What the blue is for I have no idea and cannot even begin to guess."

"You are the engineer," Aioros said with a small laugh.

"I am the _architect_," Mu smiled, "Gargantuan machine that feels alive, at least at some point in time, is hardly within my field of expertise. You are right; it is well above both of our heads." Despite his words, he still continued probing.

"This will take a while, no doubt," Mu said.

It took them two whole weekends (one of them extra long because it was Thanksgiving) just to sort through what they can. With ample support from photos, imaging software, and good old pen-to-paper schematics, they finally learned the coolant, fuel and water systems; those were not exceedingly difficult to repair. They set about diligently, connecting broken pipes and replacing smashed valves and pumps. They tried their best to find the most expensive and durable parts they could, scavenging on the internet, and Mu did the rest with gammanium and stardust sand. The electric system was like a minefield: the generator they recognized, though it looked much more complicated than any human creation and they were not brave enough to touch it; the wiring was quickly soldered back and reconnected, but they did most of that by matching color and thickness of wires. The system of blue pipes remained mysterious, so they carefully patched up broken pieces and did no more than that. The spinal piece took some custom made steel balls and rods, but in the end everything fitted together. The deformed and broken plates would have challenged any car body shop, but for Mu, who often had to resurrect saint cloths that looked more like a pile of pottery shards, it was an easy task.

The last, was something typical and necessary for all internal combustion engines—fuel. The machine had solar panels on its back, but it has been very cloudy and rainy lately. So the Friday evening after all other repairs were done, they went out in Aioros's jeep and dragged back forty liters of ethanol—given the relatively small exhaust system on such a huge machine, they didn't consider gasoline safe enough—and a couple four-liters bottles of anti-freeze. Slowly and carefully, they refueled the machine with ethanol; water was also added, while coolant stood ready aside.

For ten long, expectant minutes they waited. Nothing happened; the ethanol and water were barely circulating inside the machine.

"It is like repairing a computer," Mu mused, with just a sliver of dejection in his voice, "You may have wired all the hardware properly, yet without the programming, all is in vain."

Though Aioros too was also saddened by the lack of success, he still tried to lighten the mood, saying, "I thought you would make the cloth analogy and demand blood."

Mu paused, and pondered for a few silent minutes. Then he climbed to the creature's chest area, carefully pushed aside all the wiring to reveal what they deemed as the central electricity generator. From behind, Aioros saw Mu held his palm over the generator and let his blood drop into the machine.

"Young man, I _wasn_'_t serious_," Aioros barked.

"I think, it's working," Mu said quietly.

His blood disappeared as soon as it came into contact with the casing of the generator, almost as if being swallowed eagerly by the mass of inorganic material. "Come, Aioros," He turned and implored, "You were a wandering spirit for fourteen years; you know all the secret places between life and death. Come and help me."

Wordlessly, Aioros walked over and joined him, holding a bleeding hand over the metal creature.

Feeling more confident, Mu closed his eyes and stilled his thoughts. This was no different from a saint's cloth, he told himself. With practiced ease, he began to concentrate every ounce of his thought on capturing the lingering life hidden between wires, around pipes, inside the cracks between an armor plate and an unknown device. _It was_ _there_; he just needs to find it, capture it, and with his own life force, pull it through.

Some ten or fifteen minutes later, the electricity generator clicked, and roared.

Mu and Aioros jumped back at the same time, startled by the sudden reaction. For a few seconds they stared at the machine intently with mixed hope and apprehension. The electric generator continued to sing, though they could not even begin to guess how it worked. They only saw ethanol and water began circulating, the pipes humming and shaking from the pressure of the liquid passing through.

"Now would be a good time for more fuel and more water," Aioros said, touching a grey pipe gingerly, then he said with a frown, "And coolant."


	4. In Which the AllSpark Got His Lady

**4. In which the AllSpark got his lady**

"So, do you already have a place in mind that you want to observe, or a specific religion that you are interested in observing, Sam?" Saori got down to business pretty fast.

"Er…" Sam was heading to autobots base this weekend, and he was planning to just catch a church service on base; he thought the military aspect of it would be interesting and hopefully it would impress markers. But that plan was not looking so great with a partner. So he said, "I was going out of state this weekend and just thought to catch some church services where I am staying, but obviously it wouldn't work now. I am good for anything really."

"Oh," Saori looked mildly interested and she asked, "May I ask where you were thinking of going?"

"This military base," Sam said with a little laugh, "I have a couple GI friends."

"I see. A church service in a military base, that _would_ be interesting," Saori nodded with a smile.

"What of you? Any plan originally?" He asked.

This time it was the girl's turn to hesitate, before saying ruefully, "I too am heading out this weekend, and was going to catch something while away. But I guess we need a new plan; a place where we can both attend."

"So, where were you going to go?" Sam was just curious, but Saori seemed a little hesitant about answering.

"Oh come on," Sam said good-naturedly, "I told you where I would be going, right, thought it sounded stupid."

"Oh no, it certainly did not sound stupid! I think it would allow a great paper," Saori protested. She paused a second, then said, "Well, I am going to Vatican this weekend, so I was hoping to just watch their mass."

Sam stared a minute, then, "Right, you are worth billions."

"But we of course need a new plan," She said, "Maybe just a church service somewhere near campus? I am so very pressed for time this week."

Well, between heading to autobots base for various businesses, and a date with Mikaela at the base, and more homework, Sam was pretty busy for the weekend. He dug into his bag for his phone which contained an electronic calendar, and saw Saori pulled one out at the exact same time. They looked at each other, and then broke out laughing together.

"Oh the tragically busy lives of modern college students!" Sam said.

"Absolutely," Saori sighed, "I can get back from Vatican Sunday evening. I know there is a Buddhist temple that runs service Sunday evening near campus, can you do that?"

Sam looked at all the tasks listed on his electronic calendar, did some quick mental math, and then said, "Is six o'clock too late?"

"That'd be perfect," Saori said with another smile, and promptly texted him the date, time and address for the temple. "I have another class coming up, and I still have to make some phone calls, so I really have to run. Is there something we still need to sort out before Sunday?" Seeing Sam shook his head, she added, "See you at the temple then."

A smile, a polite nod, and then she was gone. Sam looked at his watch; apparently they talked for a total of thirteen minutes. He could not help but whistle: good girl, so crisp, so professional and business-like, left absolutely no possibility for someone that might be interested. Guess what, he was totally right about the virgin-goddess thing.

After that observation session at the Buddhist temple, they saw each other rather frequently. There were the library meetings, brainstorming over coffee, drafting a paper in his dorm room, etc. Sam quickly began to understand why Saori Kido drew conspiracy theories like a flame drawing moths. Despite all her subtlety, he could still tell that the girl was _weird._

Sometimes she stared at her book, her laptop, or even the wall a little too intently. She would laugh and say that she just had an idea and therefore "zoned" out, but Sam could swear those were not zoning out looks. Instead she looked like… she was talking to someone in her head. She once answered her cell using Greek. Sam had a Greek grandmother so he actually understood a little, and he heard her say, "You are two hundred sixty something years old, I thought you would know about this… I am sorry." Then she saw his shocked eyes, and quickly changed to a language he didn't understand. To top off all those wonderful oddities, was something that really frightened Sam. Whenever their hands or arms brushed, Sam could see blue light and sparks. They both dismissed those as static, but Sam just had this really bad feeling in his gut.

And the AllSpark really wasn't helping. Sam was seeing strange alien symbols again with alarming frequency, and his fingertips just always seemed to leak electricity. He could feel the fervent desire of the AllSpark to get out… out to what? Not knowing left Sam confused, scared, and very much unhappy. Frag it, if the AllSpark would only tell him exactly what it wants!

At his last session with Saori on a Friday afternoon, Sam felt a bit happier. After this paper he could safely stay the hell away from this woman. She can keep her oddities, and he would keep his. But unfortunately, he fainted three pages into the editing process.

He woke up lying tangled on the ground, with Saori Kido right on top of him, hands on his chest, surreally beautiful face inches from his own. It would've been every adult male's dream, but all Sam could think of was _oh my God, Mikaela will kill me._

"What the fuck are you doing?!" He croaked and tried to push her off, only to find that he couldn't really move.

Saori let out a huge sigh of relief. "Thank Father Zeus; you are awake," She said breathlessly, "You just collapsed, dropped dead, if I may say so. Your heart stopped! Don't move; I'll call paramedics right now."

_What kind of crazy idiot administers CPR first and then calls 911_? Sam thought with much annoyance. Saori stood up and reached for her purse, rummaging furiously for her phone. Sam pushed himself up slowly, just in case there was something really wrong with him. Yet strangely, other than feeling heavy-limbed, he was pretty much okay. He looked up at Saori and was about to say something when he suddenly noticed the glowing blue lines on her arm.

Sam froze. He stared hard for a minute, only to see the pattern of blue lines growing brighter and more complex.

_Shit, shit, what the hell is going on_.

"Your arm, Saori, what's wrong with your arm?"

Saori started, and then looked at her arm. Upon seeing her arm glowing blue, she frowned, looking confused, then shot a worried glance at Sam. "Probably spilt some glow gel ink on my arm," She said, "I am not the one with a stopped heart; let me call ambulance."

_Spilt gel ink?_ Sam felt his jaw hit the floor. This was no gel ink, and he was neither blind nor stupid! This was the AllSpark doing strange things and Sam knew it. The problem was how to get this overly calm girl to realize the problem and go with him to see the autobots.

"Trust me, that's no gel ink!" Sam grabbed her wrist, looking closely at the glowing blue pattern, "You know what, you really have to come with me and see a few people."

He barely finished his sentence when bright blue-white light engulfed both his hand and her wrist. Lights above them flickered on and off, on and off, and then went dark. Sam let go of the girl and scurried back. Saori's entire body was glowing. When the light finally died down Sam heard a flurry of clicks and whirs and beeps.

Saori's laptop shook, then flipped open, parts shooting away and resettling in different positions, until it finally became a butterfly like creature with the original webcam as its single eye. Sam's own laptop did something similar and was now shooting bullets at the ceiling. Cell phones on many legs sped out from their bags, zooming around like lunatics.

_Shit, oh shit_. That was Sam's only thought.


	5. In Which the Bee fought the Lion

**5. In which Bumblebee fought the Golden Lion**

"You know something of this," Saori said, turning a pair of flashing eyes towards Sam. While her voice was calm, she looked pissed and scary. Sam swallowed involuntarily.

"Come with me; we shall talk at a better place," Saori said again, and raised her hands.

She was glowing again, and this time glowing a golden hue like a miniature moon. The zooming machines suddenly stopped, as if caught by a web, then the golden light flared even stronger and all but blinded Sam. When Sam could see again, he was standing beside a lake in the middle of a huge forest. Not a single human was to be seen, only squirrels and hawks, oh yeah, and those kicking cell phones and laptops, lying on the ground, glowing gold and still unable to move.

_Oh hell_.

Sam forced himself to breath; three deep, long breaths later, he could finally open his mouth. "Where are we?" He asked rather timidly.

"Golden Ear Regional Park. It's not that far from campus, only rarely visited. I thought we should be away from prying eyes in order to talk properly." Saori paused, before saying with juts a bite of impatience, "Well, Sam? You were not so surprised to see cell phones suddenly sprouting legs. And you recognized the glowing pattern on my arms; you wanted to take me to see someone. What is going on, Sam?"

Sam swallowed, before saying, "Er, how did you get us here?"

"Your explanations first," Saori said grimly, eyes flashing.

"Okay this is going to be a very long explanation..."

Sam didn't even get a chance to start, because suddenly he heard engines roar and metal joints scream. A second later Bumblebee-no-longer-Camaro broke through the tree line, grabbed him off the ground with one hand, swerved, rolled, and was in a crouching position with his weapon trained on the girl.

"Bee! How the heck did you get here?"

"Tracing your cell phone's signal; you disappeared from the library and reappeared here, I thought a teleportation-capable Deception was involved," Bee said, gun still aiming at Saori.

"It's okay, put me down..."

Suddenly they were engulfed by golden light again. Sam blinked, once, twice, before turned and looked down. There Saori stood, holding a staff as tall as she is, glowing like a human torch. Then he felt Bee's grip around his arms loosen.

_Oh nonononono..._

Before he knew it, he was floating down to the ground again, as if buoyed by an invisible cushion. Behind him, Bumblebee stood very still, just like those immobile cell phones from earlier. Sam screamed, truly frustrated. The landing was a bit messy for him, since he was panicking and flailing his arms like a lunatic. He still hit the ground feet first, but his knees gave way, and his waving arms really didn't help the balance and he fell face flat into the dirt. A hand pulled him up, and he found himself staring into the eyes of Saori Kido once more. The beauty was looking worried.

"Are you alright?" She asked.

"Yeah, look, you totally misunderstood," He said quickly, "Bee is a friend, that's his name, Bumblebee. He just grabbed me because he thought I was in danger."

Saori sighed a little, and said, "I apologize, but it hardly seemed that he had good intentions from down here. Can you please tell him to put the weapon away? We should talk..."

KA BOOM!

Too late for talking; Bumblebee had just broke free and his gun fired off two rounds into the trees, more out of momentum than anything. The mech's face looked very much enraged, even though it was hard to read expressions on that mechanical face.

"Run, Sam, get out of the way!" He roared, every gesture of his metallic body signifying that he was going into battle mode.

"No, Bee, no! We talk!" Sam shouted hysterically, "Do NOT shoot her, Bee, she is human! Protocols!"

"She is no human," Bumblebee muttered darkly, weapon out.

Saori began to speak, voice smooth and soothing, almost with a hypnotic lull to it. "Bee, Sam says you are friend. If you are friend, please put the weapon away and let us speak..."

Bumblebee fired at her general direction instead.

"Bumblebee!!" Sam screamed in horror.

Saori was flying backward and about to hit a tree when a sudden light flashed, and she stopped. Sam blinked furiously, trying to see what happened. A tall man appeared out of nowhere and was holding Saori. He pushed the girl into a sitting position in front of tree despite her attempt to protest, then he turned around and faced Bumblebee. He should just be an average man right? Somehow, he looked _very_ menacing.

"Put that weapon away or I will put it away for you," He intoned calmly, right fist poised.

Sam groaned. Who threatens a fifteen feet tall robot with his _fist_? Bumblebee was silent, looking somewhat confused and his gun was still poised, so the man pursed his lips together and threw a punch.

All hell broke loose after that.

Lights everywhere, gold, white, dancing, shooting, exploding. Someone had just switched on a laser light fireworks show in the middle of nowhere. Sam shielded his eyes as best as he could while still trying to look. He couldn't see much though, only lights flying, and Bumblebee in full battle engagement, dodging, rolling, and shooting. Sometimes Sam could see that tall man's figure, a shadow amidst explosions of light, but most of times he was moving so fast that Sam could not catch anything.

"Stop it, oh God, please stop it," He whimpered.

Saori was much more vocal about the request. She stood up, annoyance filled her features. "Stop it this instant!" She said, voice commanding, "Aiolia, stand down!"

She was still promptly ignored. The young woman sighed and thrust her staff into the ground. "Stop, I say!"

Two seconds later, everything stilled. Bumblebee stood five feet from the lake, tall and straight as a pine tree, gun still pointed, but perfectly immobile. Golden light swam around him like a thousand snakes. The tall man was perhaps ten feet from Bumblebee and just as still, wearing a worried expression.

"Aiolia, you _will_ stand down when I tell you so!" Saori said to him sharply. Then she turned to Bumblebee and said, "Bee, I mean you no harm, nor would I harm Sam, who is a dear colleague and still needs to finish a paper with me!"

She drew a quick breath, paused a second, then flashed a beautiful smile. Sam almost applauded for her guts; he surely wouldn't be smiling when suddenly caught in this mess.

"Can we talk like civilized people now, gentlemen?" She said, "Sam, tell me about Bumblebee here, and tell me why our laptops and cell phones just came alive."


	6. In which stories converge

**6. In which Mu and Aioros heard about giant robots, again**

The generator in the dead robot had been turning for a good half-hour now; ethanol was disappearing like boiling water. At one point Aioros was obliged to go out and buy some more ethanol, this time he filled up two 40-litre tanks and hoped for the best.

After enough ethanol to cross Nevada has been burned, they heard a few more devices clicking into life, humming and whirring. Then a deep voice chimed something, sounding like a strange symphony of lowest organ tones and quick machine clicks. Mu and Aioros looked at each other uncertainly.

"Can you understand us?" Finally Mu asked.

More clicks and hums and whirs, then a strong tenor suddenly spoke, "Input language, English; life form, carbon-based biological; location, Earth, Solaris 3, system coordinates…" The machine spewed out a long series of numbers, then finally, "Input acceptable, continue."

Mu and Aioros looked at each other again, both wearing a similar grim expression. "It's not truly alive," Mu whispered, sounding pained, "It still feels like before, soulless, an empty shell with remnant life energy, no more."

Aioros nodded with a sigh, before saying to the machine, "Are you fully repaired?"

The machine intoned, "Power twelve percent; generating system functional, hydrocarbon used, efficiency thirty percent; electric system, sixty-one percent; energon production one percent, energon source desired..."

"Energon?" Aioros asked with a helpless shrug.

"Perhaps the substance that goes through the blue pipes," Mu hazarded a guess, but there was very little he could do.

The machine was still going down a list, "System automatic processing seventy-seven percent; primary processing not located; secondary processing not located; system database eighty-five percent; memory database not located; system components ninety-two percent; specialized components deactivated; transformation components eighty-five percent, performing system transformation check..."

At that line the machine begins to _move_. A metal arm lifted and rotated, and then the machine sat up, upper body forming a perfect ninety degrees angle with the legs. Mu and Aioros both winced; only the Goddess knows if their makeshift spine structure could properly hold up to that kind of stress. The creature was moving faster and faster, legs retracting in, head folding into the chest, arms rotating and shifting. Every imaginable part of the giant robot was turning into something else. A few minutes later, the robot was gone; in front of them was a silver Pontiac Solstice GXP.

The machine spoke one last time, "Transformation process ninety-seven percent stable; fuel efficiency thirty-eight percent; alt-mode recharging selected," and then it fell silent. It simply sat there, almost as if a real Pontiac Solstice, waiting for a driver.

"Are you still there?" Mu asked uncertainly after a long silence.

"System online, affirmative," The machine intoned as a reply and fell silent again.

Aioros shook his head and murmured, "The system is back, yet it is still dead. Its life is not something we can give back."

"Aye," Mu nodded gravely, "I wonder though, if..."

As if catching his thoughts, Aioros said, "Yes, it is indeed time for us to confess this crime to our Lady. She will want some answers, I think, despite the ancient edict. This seems more than the product of a petty arms race among nations."

"Give her a call? At least ask her if she can come here this weekend," Mu eyed the silver Pontiac and could not help but sigh, "What a story we will have for her."

Aioros flipped open his phone and said with a small laugh, "Ten o'clock on a Friday night, calling a college freshman, I am sure we have impeccable timing."

He dialed nonetheless, and after half a minute he had to give up. The phone was ringing quiet vigorously but no one answered. Strangely, a couple minutes later, a text message landed in his inbox. "Aiolia just texted me?" Aioros was puzzled. He flipped open his phone and quickly scanned the message. He became very still after he finished reading, simply shocked speechless.

"What did Aiolia say?" Mu asked.

Wordlessly Aioros displayed the cell phone in front of Mu's eyes. The text message was short, terse, and radiating tension from that tiny LCD screen.

"She is sitting right beside me right now and she says, 'After a three-hour conversation with a fifteen feet tall robot about aliens and civil wars and God, unless someone's life is on the line, I really need some time to rest before anything else. Do not call again if no one is dying.'"

"By Zeus," Mu drew a shaky breath, not quite believing his own eyes.

"The Fate sisters still have that horrible sense of humor," Aioros muttered darkly.


	7. In which the Goddess dreamed of Life

**7. In which the goddess dreamed of life**

"So there it is," Sam said, "I really think the AllSpark did something strange to you, and it's probably a good idea for you to go see the rest of the autobots right now. We need to figure out what happened and try to map out what to do from there."

Bumblebee added, "I have already communicated with Prime about the situation; he requests our presence at base immediately. A government aircraft can be dispatched to pick us up as soon as you are ready."

Saori buried her face in her hands; beside her, Aiolia blinked owlishly. It took Sam and Bumblebee a good three hours to explain this extremely long and complex story of aliens and civil wars, of decepticons and God-essence, of government cover-ups and newly forged alliance. By father Zeus, she got exhausted just by listening! It was past nine o'clock, and they were still in this empty, pitch-black forest, sharing an unlikely tale by the light of a Camaro-turned-robot. After this whole Twilight Zone occurrence, Saori only wanted coffee, and sleep. Then, maybe, she could sort out for herself whether she was really affected by this God-like energy source known as the AllSpark.

She sighed, and said, "It is late now, Sam; we really should go back and get some rest. Let me sleep on this, think about it and sort it out a little; then perhaps I shall go with you to see the leader of the autobots. I have three papers due next on Monday; I still need to get through that first."

Sam exclaimed incredulously, "After all that we've told you, you are still thinking about papers? Look at your laptop!"

Saori turned and looked at the newly-born creature. It was sitting at her side all this while, listening attentively to their conversation, silent and unmoving like a strange toy. "Maybe I should consider the broken laptop excuse," Saori said drily.

"I not broken," The laptop suddenly spoke up in objection, "System files fully operational; document files intact…"

Saori and Aiolia jumped at the same time. Aiolia's air of impregnable calm and nonchalance finally cracked. He growled with annoyance, glaring at the laptop-creature. "And now you talk?!"

"I talk; language, English," the laptop chimed merrily.

"Please stop talking now," Saori murmured, rubbing her temple and trying to chase away that headache, "Can you please go back to a laptop? We really should get going, and I don't fancy holding you like this."

The laptop nodded eagerly and folded itself back into an inconspicuous computer. Saori's cell phone, which had wandered off at some point, suddenly reappeared and scurried on top of the laptop. There it folded itself down and stopped clicking. Saori picked up her electronics so very gingerly, cradling them in her arms. She shot another look at Sam and Bumblebee, saying, "You can get back, no problems, right?"

"Sure, Bee is here," Sam said, "Wait, what? Hey don't go yet…"

"Like I said, I need to sleep on it," She said. With that, she disappeared in a flash of gold, her companion gone as well. Sam groaned. Who _was _this Saori Kido? Were giant alien robots not enough, now he was meeting x-men too?

By the time Saori teleported back to her apartment, ignored a call from Aioros (no way she would still use that cell phone with legs) and answered with a testy text message through Aiolia, took a shower, it was already ten-thirty. Aiolia handed her a mug of steaming milk when she stepped out of the shower; she was grateful, so she tried not to pout about the fact that it was not coffee. She was strangely exhausted, could barely keep her eyes open, so she did not even remember when she climbed into bed.

Saori dreamed strange things that night. In her dream she was her younger self, black haired and silver-eyed, wandering upon a pristine Earth yet unburdened with human presence. Prometheus was showing her his newest creation: a doll made of animal bones and sinew, with flower petals glued on for skin. The doll's arms and legs moved, its face smiled, and it looked remarkably like Father Zeus.

"He could be my brother!" the young Athena had exclaimed.

"I made him in Zeus's image," Prometheus said, "It can move a little, but still, it is only a doll."

She leaned closer to that doll, surveying it closely. "I wish that it were more than a doll," She murmured, "This world is so very big, and there are only so few of us. There should be another race, a race that lives and dies like flowers and fishes, to rule over this land."

"I think you are right," Prometheus nodded.

Athena leaned closer still, staring at those large, dull eyes of the doll, taken from the body of a dead wolf. With a sudden impulse, she leaned in and kissed the doll, breathing life down dead bones and sinew and flower petals. When she pulled away, the doll jerked. First the doll moved in sporadic, uncontrolled gestures; a few minutes later motions connected together and became smooth. Flower petals that were the doll's skin rippled and morphed into real skin, almost like hers; dead bones and sinew rounded out into real skeleton and flesh; that pair of dead wolf's eyes sudden gleamed bright and lively.

"Hoo, hoo," The creature made some unidentifiable noises in its throat, then it looked up at the young goddess and smiled—a beautiful, natural, liquid smooth smile.

Saori was happily reliving the glorious joy of seeing the first human, but her dreamscape changed quickly. She was standing on modern Earth again, surrounded by cars, planes, boats and all the machinery mankind has ever built. She touched a car beside her, with a sense of purpose that she did not quite understand. Sparks flew and the car suddenly jerked. A moment of silence, then the car roared into life; engine revved, parts folded and unfolded, shifting into shapes impossible to imagine. A few minutes later, the car was gone, only a gigantic robotic creature remained. The robot slowly knelt down before her, holding out a metal hand. A pair of glowing light bulbs stared at her intently, while a deep voice hummed, "Friend?"

She looked back uncertainly, not knowing what to say. Were they friends?

Before she could make a decision, she woke up. She woke in a daze, dreams and events the night before all folding into an unrecognizable mass of confusion. She went into the kitchen as if one sleep-walking and started the coffee machine while half asleep. She didn't quite notice how her arms glowed faintly with alien symbols, nor did she see the blue sparks flowing out of her slender fingers. She was going for the fridge when somebody caught her hand. She started, and before she had time to really think, lights and sparks exploded in front of her eyes. Whoever held her hand was forcefully dragging her away from the fridge.

That was when Saori finally woke up proper. She looked up and saw Aiolia before her, expression stern and pained. Slowly, very slowly, Aiolia released the young woman's hand; his long fingers were red and black, as if singed by an electric fire.

"Aiolia!" Saori murmured with horror.

"It will heal quickly enough for me," Aiolia said, looking at her with clear concern, "Are you quite alright?"

Saori frowned. Then all the Twilight Zone memories of last night came pounding back; so weighty they knocked out her breath for a few moments.

"You mean to ask, am I feeling that alien energy source, right?" She said, raising her hands and inspecting them. The symbols on her arm were fading swiftly, yet... She frowned again, quietly saying, "I can feel this strange power, yes, but... I don't know, I can't feel it _properly_; I don't know what I am dealing with."

"Yet, had I not pulled you away a minute ago," Aiolia said, "You would've..."

"Brought the refrigerator to life?"

"Or killed it entirely," Aiolia replied dryly, "Saori, the boy Sam had a good point. Only they might have answers for us now. Nevada is not that far for us, you know that; I can accompany you there."

"You are right," Saori muttered, "But after coffee and breakfast."


	8. In which Jazz came back to life

**8. In which Jazz returned to life**

Half way through breakfast, Saori suddenly remembered the rather impolite text message last night, so she borrowed Aiolia's phone once more to call Aioros.

Just like Aioros had exclaimed last night, the Fates sisters have a horrible sense of humor. Had Saori not called Aioros that morning, the rest of her Saturday might have progressed a little smoother. But she did call, and as a result all those crazy moments of many separate lives quickly rolled into one giant mess. Over the phone, after a quick greeting Aioros asked hurriedly, "Saori, when you said 'giant robot' last night, were you being literal, or was it a figure of speech?"

Saori blinked, and then replied with a sigh. "I was quite serious and literal," She said, "But the full story is really too long, and too strange to be talked over on the phone. Can we speak about it some other time? Maybe tonight or tomorrow? I am going to Nevada to see a few people today, and Aiolia will accompany me. Maybe I will just go to New York with him tonight and visit your place."

"Nevada? Did you say Nevada?"

"Yes, why?"

"Giant robot. And Nevada." After that strange little sentence, Aioros fell silent. The silence was so long that Saori wandered for a second if she lost connection.

When she made sure that she was still paying for that long distance call, she called uncertainly into the speaker, "Aioros?"

"My lady, I am also in Nevada, at the family property just outside Las Vegas," Aioros replied, voice suddenly grave, "I think, I am almost certain, that long story you cannot tell over the phone has something to do with this project Mu and I have been working on lately. Can you meet us first? Aiolia knows where we are and can take you here. We will be waiting for you in the aircraft hangar."

This time it was Saori's turn to stay silent for a long while. Aioros and Mu in Nevada, working on a project that they think has something to do with the aliens and robots? She murmured a few words of agreement, feeling a headache returning. When Saori hung up the phone, she was again in a vile mood. Working through a persistent headache, she tried her best to put together some French toast and fruit salad. After breakfast she went out with Aiolia and bought herself a new laptop and cell phone. She may be the goddess of war, but the idea of talking into a little mechanical creature with lots of legs unnerved her more than words can convey. She still took the newly alive phone and laptop with her, for she did not quite trust them enough to leave them alone in her apartment.

When she and Aiolia finally reached the Demetrio property outside Las Vegas, it was high noon. Strangely, the aircraft hangar's gate was firmly closed, and Aioros and Mu did not come and greet them. When they got in, they saw that there were only one small jet and a silver sports car parked inside the hangar.

"Where are they now? And what the heck were they doing in here?" Aiolia muttered darkly, "With all that force field around the hangar, you would think they are hiding your staff here, instead of just a plane and a sports car."

Saori frowned and did not answer first. She carefully walked around the aircraft hangar, as if feeling for something. At last she asked with furrowed brow, "Do you feel something strange here, Aiolia?"

Aiolia concentrated for a few seconds, then shrugged helplessly, saying, "Too much cosmos energy here; all I can feel is my brother and Mu. If there is anything else, it's probably masked."

Saori nodded slowly. She looked around one more time, before walking over and surveying the sports car curiously. "Aioros bought a new car?" She asked.

"Not that I know of," Aiolia said with a frown, "Why did he leave it sitting in an aircraft hangar anyway? The house on the property has a garage."

Saori cocked her head, almost as if thinking out loud to herself, "Are you thinking that it might not be just a car? But no, it doesn't quite feel like that. While this car also seems to have something strange to it, it doesn't quite feel like... like it's fully alive, and it certainly does not feel like Bumblebee." She paused a second, tapping the car's hood with slender fingers thoughtfully, before adding with a sigh of frustration, "You are right, there is so much force-field here, I really can't sense anything else."

Aiolia was about to say something when he suddenly noticed Saori's fingers were again lit up with blue-white sparks. He jumped and almost instinctively reached out, trying to pull her away from the car. But Saori said sharply, "No, don't come any closer."

She closed her eyes, a hand still lingering on the sports car's hood. Something inside her was roaring; a voice seemed to be shouting at her, crying out some hidden desire. Yet the voice was vague, faint, not even speaking anything coherent that she could understand; it was only snatches of feeling, a sense of great loss and confusion, of desperate struggle. "Who are you?" She murmured, "What are you trying to tell me? If your need is justified, I am glad to help however I can."

Snakes of electricity shot out of her fingers like lightning bolts; the silver sport scar under her hand jerked at the sudden pulse of energy, and then it roared. Engine revved, generators sang, parts whirred and click and began to shoot out, folding and unfolding into unimaginable shapes and resettling in strange positions. A couple minutes later, the sports car was gone; standing before them was a gargantuan robot much like Bumblebee they saw last night, silver and black and gleaming. The robot's cannons went online faster than they can react, massive barrel leveled at them.

"Jazz of the autobots here. Wat up, my friends? Of course, I hope that for both of our sakes, you really are not associated with Sector Seven in any way possible," The mechanical creature said, voice cheerful, but that hint of threat _very_ apparent.

Saori and Aiolia stared up at the silver robot speechlessly. Before they could open their mouth, a person suddenly tumbled out of the small plane sitting at the other end of the hangar. It was a young woman in her mid-twenties, slender and blond, wearing a tattered gold dress and face dirty from dust and sweat and tears, yet still somehow managing to look stunningly gorgeous. What the heck was she doing on Demetrio family's property, and how did she get into the hangar and into that plane?

"You are an autobot," She gasped, staring at Jazz, "Help, decepticon attack, outside, other end of the property..."


	9. In which Maggie learned of a doom

**9. In which Maggie learned of an impending doom (proposal) **

It was bright and early Saturady morning, Maggie Madsen smoothed out her dress, looking at herself in the mirror distractedly. The dress flashed a dazzling gold, the bodice hugging her impressive curves tightly, while a balloon skirt flared out, making her long legs look even longer. It really wasn't her normal style, but Milo would no doubt like it. Milo always liked her in bold colours, flashing gold, Valentino red, jewel tone purple. "You've got fire in your soul, baby, so wear something to match," Milo had told her once, "The business white and grey and blue make you look like the diplomat you are not." Maggie had rebutted that statement then, but she did also start wearing bold colours on their dates.

They had been steady for nearly three years now, and for all of Maggie's excuses and fears, she knew he was probably the one. Just the way he stood by her and fixed her after the whole Hoover Dam business was proof enough of his qualities. Right after the alien robot war, Maggie went through hell. She was working without break, coding day and night to make American computer networks more protected against the superior decepticon technology. Every day she went from autobot base to government office to briefing meeting with this general or that expert. Maggie usually handled stress pretty well, but this was different. Being suddenly thrust into a galactic war and pressed by such weighty responsibility finally took its toll. She had so many nightmares that she could barely sleep; she did not want to eat and lost weight rapidly; she was also going through such emotional roller coasters, one minute she could not stand any company, and the next minute she just desperately needed to hold someone. No ordinary man would have stayed by her side through that, yet somehow, Milo, this flirty and proud Casanova look-alike, not only stayed but also carried her through the worst. Every time Maggie looked back and remembered all those gentle words and attentive little things, she almost wanted to cry.

She loved him. If there was one thing she knew with crystal clarity in her messy life, it was that she loved Milo Kanakaredes. She loved him so much that she was seriously considering leaving him, because she couldn't stand the thought of dragging him into this alien war and getting him hurt.

Maggie put on another necklace, looking at her reflection in the mirror critically. Darn, it still didn't match. She mused for a minute, then changed out of her dress and headed out, planning to buy some matching jewelry. She wasn't planning on driving, but when she was walking through the underground parking lot Sunstreaker honked at her. She jumped in with a grumble. Sunstreaker was an obsessive guardian, so she really tried to let him have his way just to save the drama. Apparently the decepticons knew how good a programmer she was, and there were already two attempts on her life already. Sunstreaker had saved her sorry behind both times, so she was obligated to do as her guardian ordered.

"Where do you want to go this time?" Once she got in, Sunstreaker began to pull out of the parking lot and asked with a bite of impatience.

"Store; just want some jewelry," She mumbled.

"You have boxes and boxes of shinning stones," Sunstreaker said disapprovingly, "Why do you need more?"

Maggie made a derisive sound in her throat, saying, "You sure can talk, you are the 'I am a Lamborghini therefore I will not have a speck of dust on my paint job' mech." She paused a second, before continuing, "Because nothing matches my dress. I need something matching. Oh, Sunny, if you only know how desperately I want tonight to be perfect. It might as well be my last night with Milo."

Her Lamborghini stayed silent for a few minutes, before muttering gruffly, "So you decided? You are going to tell that punk everything tonight, about me and everything else?"

"Stop saying it like that; you make it sound as if we have some illicit relationship. But yeah, you are right about the plan. I am going to tell him about you guys and the war. I am _hunted_, you know? It's just not fair to put him through that kind of danger unknowingly. This is not some secret you keep to yourself if you are hoping to have a serious relationship." Maggie fell silent, then after a pause she spoke again miserably, "Except, I guess after I tell him this, he will just walk out of my life. That'd be it."

"He better not," Sunstreaker growled, "I'll make sure of it. No one hurts you."

"Sunstreaker!" Maggie said, slapping the steering wheel non-too-gently, "You can't just _drag_ people into your war if they are not willing! And you sure won't do anything to that poor guy! I am going to give him the scare of his life already, Jeez!"

Sunstreaker dropped Maggie off at an unrecognizable underground parking lot. When she emerged into the main level of the store, she blanched. This place was _huge_, and the amount of silver and gold and shinning stones around hurt her eyes. God, this must have been the largest, most expensive jeweler in town. Las Vegas was expensive enough without her Lamborghini guardian driving her to where real Lamborghinis went! She was planning a hasty retreat when she suddenly caught a familiar figure. That tall and lanky frame, that mass of blond hair wrapped up in a ponytail, that easy gesture which exuded unknowing charm... It couldn't be. She walked up a little closer, hiding behind a display stand and watching. It was him!

"May I help you with something, miss?" A voice suddenly spooked her.

"Uh, yeah," She hastily turned to face the young saleswoman, "I uh, want something to match a gold halter top dress, maybe a yellow pendant, or a string of gold pearls, something like that..."

The saleswoman began to recount the virtues of various out-of-this-world expensive items, and Maggie really wasn't listening. She was simply staring at Milo a couple display cases over, talking with a young woman and looking a little too happy even for his usual cheery self. She couldn't help but broke the saleswoman's exposition, asking, "Um, sorry to ask, but you know that gentleman over there, what is he doing?"

The saleswoman stopped, turned over and looked, and looked back at her with a bit of confusion. "Do you know that gentleman?" She asked

"He..." Maggie stopped suddenly, for there was no more need to ask. She saw something sparkle like liquid fire in Milo's hand. Only a diamond can glow like that. Oh Lord... For a few minutes she just stood there, dumbfounded, her mind suddenly very blank.

"Miss?" The saleswoman whispered with a conspiring smile, "If you cry right now, I think he will definitely notice you."

"I...I've got to go," She whispered, and ran.

She ran out of the store, back to the parking lot, and shut herself inside her Lamborghini guardian as if running away from a decepticon. She sat there, panting, eyes brimming with tears.

"What is wrong?" Sunstreaker was instantly alert, even though his scanner picked up no threat what so ever.

"He is going to propose today," Maggie said amidst choked sobs, "Oh my God, he is going to propose to me."

"Propose?" Sunstreaker didn't get it, and he really didn't like the fact Maggie was such a nervous wreck. Heck, he agreed to guard this young and weak femme because she actually carried a level head on her shoulders. Yet somehow, every time that aggravating blond _punk_ was involved, Maggie would just turn into a bundle of nerves.

"He wants to get married..."

"Married?"

"You have Google, go look it up!" Maggie snapped, and then buried her face in her hands, "God, I am supposed to be the one dropping the big bomb, not him, not him! God, I can't do this..."

Sunstreaker obviously looked it up, and then stayed silent for a long while. Finally he said, "Meh, I suppose it is an important decision. I don't mind guarding another human, if you want to know."

Maggie raised her head. Somehow Sunstreaker's words made her feel moved and comforted. At least she would always have Sunstreaker. Vain, almost sociopathic he might be, he still genuinely cared for her; he was even willing to take on another charge for her sake, even if the said charge might not be too thrilled to have a live Lamborghini guardian. But before she could say "thank you", her cell phone rang. She hastily pulled it out.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Milo," She murmured, frantically wiping away the tears of frustration, even if he couldn't see them.

"Are you alright, sweetheart? You sound a little down."

"I am fine, just getting a little caught up with work," Maggie muttered in reply.

"Ten o'clock Saturday morning?" There came the teasingly shocked reply, "Hey, you won't let work replace our date, would you? I don't care, I will be there at noon; even if you are in your nerd suit, you are still going out with me."

"I don't have a nerd suit. I do _real _programming, and you are the actual nerd with your little computer games," Maggie shot back. Despite herself, she could feel her face pulling into a smile. Oh, Milo always had the magic of making her smile, no matter how horrible she was feeling. She hesitated a second, then breathed and said, "Milo, I uh, have something to tell you tonight."

A peel of laughter was the reply. "Well, guess what, me too," He said, "I will pick you up at noon then, we have all day to talk."

"Can we, can we take my car?"

"Your car? That Lamborghini everyone knows about but I have yet to see?" Milo laughed again, "Sweetheart, I thought showing off impossibly expensive cars is a _male _tendency. But we are off-roading tonight, so probably not a good idea. Your shinning gold Lamborghini will be ruined by Nevada sand."

"No, but..." Maggie was about to object that Sunstreaker, for all his vanity, was still a soldier and wouldn't mind some sand, but Milo quickly cut her off.

"Okay baby, still have to take care of a few things for the date, so I've gotta run. See you at noon?"

Maggie hesitated, and said, "Okay, see you at noon."

When she hung up the phone she was near tears again. She couldn't say no to him; she couldn't just be out with it. Deep down, she didn't want to tell Milo this stupid story about alien robots, because she was sure it would put a quick stop to their relationship. She just wanted to forget all this craziness, say yes to his proposal, and marry him like any ordinary woman.

She sighed, and murmured, "Come on, Sunny, let's go back. I need to get ready."

_No use running away from all this mess_ , Maggie told herself, _I will just enjoy today; if everything blows up in my face, that's just how it's going to be._

She had no idea just how prophetic her thoughts turned out to be.


	10. In which all mess rolled into one

They were lying on top of a little hill, beneath an enormous olive tree, watching the sun slip in and out of puffs of clouds. Before them was the open Nevada plain, shinning gold in the November sun. A few bushes and cacti plants stood here and there, black shapes against a yellow backdrop. At the feet of the hill, a tiny creek murmured and snaked its way across the dry land; its very presence was a sheer marvel. Behind them, Milo's Landrover played a soft, lilting Greek love song.

"Ready to head out and see more of the real desert?" Milo asked with a smile.

"Let's stay here just a while longer. It's so beautiful," Maggie murmured with a content sigh, "How did you find such a place?"

"A friend's property is a couple miles over; I come here all the time to stargaze and to vandalize his house," Milo said with an easy grin.

"Which friend? Edward?"

"No, no," Milo said, "Camus would not live anywhere other than his native France, or Siberia. Maybe Greece when he has too, but that's it, certainly not America. This is the Demetrio family's property. Remember that blond policeman from NYC, the one who argued with you about universal health care?"

"Aiolia Demetrio, right?" Maggie laughed, "We sure had a good debate! I didn't really expect it of him, you know? He was too left-leaning for a New Yorker. And he spoke way too fondly about Cuba, especially for someone who grew up in Miami!"

"If you think he is cuddly with Cuba, wait until you meet his brother, or better yet, his elder sister."

Maggie laughed again and said, "You have some very interesting friends, Milo. I really hope I can get to know them better in the future."

"You will, I am sure," Milo looked at her, "And what about your friends? I still haven't met the famous Sunny, who apparently gave you a _Lamborghini_ of all things as a birthday present."

The smile faded from Maggie's face instantly. Her eyes grew large and her lips quivered. There it was, she knew she couldn't run from this problem. Milo winced and muttered, "Oh sweetheart, please don't tell me that I just said something incredibly insensitive and stepped on seriously off-limits issues."

Maggie shook her head silently. She drew a breath, blew out the air, and breathed again, before she could trust herself to speak. "I… Milo, I want to tell you something."

"It is very important?"

"Very, life-and-death important," She replied gravely and frankly, "It is something you really need to know, something I should have told you long before we became so... attached. I am sorry about not saying anything before." She drew another deep breath, and the continued, "I uh, want you to meet Sunny, formally. He followed us and is probably somewhere near..."

"What?" Milo seemed quite disturbed by the idea.

"Sorry, but I wanted him to come," She said miserably, feeling tears welling up in her eyes, "I really need you to meet him, and to listen to this long, messy story. It's really important... I, I want you to know. Oh God, I am making it sound all wrong, aren't I?"

Milo looked at her levelly for a few second, before saying, "Before you tell me this story, can I just say one thing?"

Seeing Maggie nod timidly, he leaned closer and brushed a kiss on her forehead, murmuring, "Listen Maggie, I love you. Nothing is going to change that. I can't promise you anything else, but I can promise you that I will always love you."

Holding back tears, Maggie flipped open her cell phone and dialed Sunstreaker. The autobot had given her a number that was connected to his internal communication link when he first became her guardian. This way, she could find him anywhere, anytime. Strangely, Sunstreaker did not pick up right away like he always did, and Maggie was shocked when she actually heard a ringtone.

"Sunny?" She whispered uncertainly, "Sunstreaker?"

The ringtone stopped, and on the other end of the line, a low voice chuckled maliciously. Maggie felt her blood turn to ice instantly.

"Hello, autobot pet, this is Starscream speaking," The voice said, "Ready to die?"

Before Maggie could react, she felt Milo's arms closed around her tightly. A flash of gold, a sensation of weightlessness, and she suddenly found herself standing at the foot of the hill, half a mile from where she was a second before. Almost at the same time, something exploded on top of the hill where she was. In the sky a F22 whipped by; it rolled out of the plane form mid-air, unfolding noisily into a twenty-something feet robot.

Maggie couldn't get a good look at the robot, for Milo embraced her even tighter and forced her head down. Now her faced was buried in his chest; all she could see was the dark fabric of his shirt. She heard more bangs and crashes and roaring mechanisms, and she was thinking rather dumbly that there was probably more than just Starscream. She felt that weightlessness again, and it felt like she was moving somehow. Everything was happening at the same time and she had absolutely no idea what was happening. Suddenly she heard an explosion too close and too loud; she felt a mad jostle and was torn from Milo's embrace. She landed on her back, and all the air in her body was knocked out. It took her a full second, but when she finally regained her senses she scrambled up, looking around madly. She saw two—two!—decepticons tower in front of her. Two paces to her left, Milo knelt on his knees, head bowed and face hidden underneath a mass of blood-soaked golden locks. His shirt was in tatters, revealing a bloodied back and chest, and his left arm hung limply by his side.

"No, no, stop it, stop!" She leapt over and knelt in front of him, holding his shoulders protectively and screaming, "Leave him out of it! He has nothing to do with the autobots, just leave him alone! I am the one you want."

Milo suddenly raised his head, right arm wrapping around her waist, and he whispered, "Hold on."

Gold light flashed, again and again; she felt as if she was riding a roller coaster, going up and down. She remembered that she felt solid ground for two brief moments, before all this stopped and she was standing inside an aircraft hangar.

"Milo!" She screamed, even though he was still holding her.

Someone else also called, "Milo!"

A tall, wiry man of undeterminable age suddenly appeared, looking down at Milo worriedly. "How bad is it?" He asked.

"I'm still alive," Milo grunted out. He wiped away the blood on his face, eyed his dislocated left shoulder, and then popped his arm back in place with one clean snap. He didn't even cringe when bones cracked back into place noisily. "Mu is out there?" He asked again.

His friend nodded, then placed a gentle hand on his shoulder and said, "Be still, Milo, you look horrible."

But Milo caught the hand, saying, "Save your strength; we will need it elsewhere. I don't know what those things are, but I know even Mu won't hold them back for long by himself. We have to go, now."

His friend paused a second only, then nodded, and was simply gone with a flash of golden light. Milo turned back to Maggie and whispered, "Stay here, Maggie. This place is protected and should be safe. But if it does come crumbling down, you will run as fast and as far as you can, do you understand me?"

Maggie stared at him dumbly, "You are heading back out there? You… you can't, you can't fight them and you are hurt…"

"Do you understand me?"

Maggie could only nod. Golden light flashed again, and Milo was gone too. Only she was left standing in this huge aircraft hangar, with only a parked car and plane for company.


	11. In which Starscream died

The airplane hangar was so empty, without any sort of cover, so that when Maggie heard the door creaking open, she panicked. Really, she should have been a little bit more sensible: Starscream obviously would not bother with the door. But at the moment she could only look around wildly, in search of any sort of cover. The sports car obviously wouldn't do it, she would be easily found; however, the small airplane was ready for boarding. Of course, she would still be found if the intruders bother to look, but one minute of cover is still cover. She ran towards the plane and clambered in as fast as she could; the hangar door slid open just as she closed off the cockpit cover.

There were only two intruders. One was a young woman, younger than herself even, and another was… She paused and drew a sharp breath; that voice most definitely belonged to Aiolia Demetrio, she debated him long enough to recognize that deep but exuberant voice anywhere. Aiolia and the young woman were talking about strange things: force fields, cosmos, car… What? She didn't know what to do, so she stayed inside the plane and listened to them talk. After a while they stopped talking, and it quieted down in the hangar. Just as she was wondering if they left, she suddenly heard an engine roar into life.

Wait, what?

Engine roared louder, and machine parts hummed in a sonorous harmony of steel; she heard gears cranking and rotating, parts extending and contracting. It was so loud, so incredibly noisy, and oh so familiar. No, no way, yet… She heard enough of these to recognize this cacophony: it's a transformer shifting modes.

She wondered if she was going crazy, or if Starscream finally landed here, but next minute she heard an unfamiliar mechanical voice, saying, "_Jazz of the autobots here. Wat up, my friends? Of course, I hope that for both of our sakes, you really are not associated with Sector Seven in any way possible._"

Jazz. Autobot.

It sounded so impossible, and in any other circumstance she would certainly ask how it came to be, but right now, frankly, she couldn't care less. She scrambled out of the airplane, and found herself staring at a slim autobot of gleaming black and silver, just a little taller than Bumblebee, looking very lethal with those glowing cannons.

"You are an autobot," She gasped, staring at Jazz, "Help, decepticon attack, outside, other end of the property..."

The newly alive Jazz seemed just a little confused by the sudden declaration of Decepticon attack, but it was for a split second only. Then he reacted. "Details, woman!" He roared, "Who, positions, numbers, and what friendly forces?"

"Starscream, and at least one other," She replied, her analyst's instinct kicking in and triumphing over her fears, "I don't know precise positions but close to here. Sunstreaker was following me, but his comm link had been hacked by Starscream; he might be down. There are a couple, no three, humans out there."

"Alright!" That was all Jazz needed; he raced out of the hangar, vanishing from their view before they could put in another word.

"My brother is out there," Aiolia said to Maggie, "And since you are here, so is Milo, I presume? They are all fighting those Decepticons?"

Maggie nodded and murmured, "Milo is hurt; he looked terrible but he insisted on going out there…" The misery and desperation was building up in Maggie little by little, and she felt like she was choking on those difficult words.

The young woman standing beside Aiolia suddenly strode up to Maggie and took her hands comfortingly. "Milo will be fine, I promise you." She flashed Maggie a beautiful smile, before saying, "Just wait here a little longer; we will bring Milo back to you. Trust me."

She was about to turn and leave, but Maggie held on to her hand. "Let me go with you," Maggie said, "I know decepticons, I know how they fight, I can be of some use. Starscream came for me; I don't want to let others die for me while I hide out here. Let me go with you."

The young woman appraised her for a few seconds, and smiled again, saying, "No one is going to die. Come, let's go put a stop to this mess."

Golden glow everywhere again, and a second later, they found themselves standing beside the little creek where the initial attack had happened. Milo and two others were there, as was Jazz; beside them were two heaps of sprawling metal, looking like—is that even possible?- the dead bodies of Starscream and another decepticon.

Maggie noticed the young woman beside her gave a start, and asked sharply, "They are dead?"

The few humans looked among themselves, not knowing how to respond. Jazz, who was poking at the heaps of metal, now stood up and said in a tone of mixed regret and relief, "Yep, they seem pretty dead to me." Jazz paused a little, before saying, "Hard, hard blows to the back; took out all the crucial fuel lines and electric wiring in one shot, clean and very well done. So which one of you should I thank? Pretty neat work for a carbon-based human, I must say. How did you guys know where to hit? Have you guys been getting lessons from Ratchet?" His words were light-hearted, but his voice lowered a little, and his tone dead serious.

There was a moment of dead silence, then Aioros walked up to Jazz and bowed deeply. He said in a quiet but nonetheless clear voice, "I am sorry for killing your friends, but I could not find any other way to stop them. They seemed intent on destroying everything around them, and downtown Las Vegas is simply too close."

"Oh, don't be too sorry," Jazz said hastily, "They are certainly _not_ my friends. And you are correct: this is too damn close to dense population centers. Starscream would have no compunction killing humans by the hundreds, so you did a good thing putting a stop to it here and now. I am still curious, how did you hit him and how _did _you know where to hit?"

"As for that," Aioros sighed, "I spent the last month repairing the damage to your spine, so I thought it would certainly do enough damage if I replicated the injury you suffered."

At that Jazz froze completely.


	12. In which God wants Starscream revived

They stood in silence for a considerable moment, before Jazz knelt down, bending his back to bring his face to a level closer to Aioros's. He asked with incredulity and confusion, "You repaired me? And you brought me to life? But that is impossible, you can't possibly do that! I remember, it was…"

Aioros cut in here, replying calmly, "No, I could not bring you back to life. My friend and I, we only repaired your spine as best as we could, and gave you some ethanol fuel. You changed into the form of a car, and there were some system sounds, but I did not think you were alive then." After these few lines he turned and looked at Saori, finally showing some uncertainty. He murmured, "My Lady, was it you who brought him back?"

"Yes, I brought him back," Saori stopped, and then as if a thought suddenly struck her, her slender eyebrows knitted together and she corrected herself, saying, "Though, it wasn't truly me. It was another force, a force that knows you and is known to you, working through me. He was so very worried for you and he wants to see you well." She frowned again, as if puzzled by her own words, before finally adding, "Ah, I cannot explain this clearly, but you should know him, should you not, Jazz?"

Jazz may be a large inorganic robot without respiration, but he seemed to intake a large gust of air here, and said, "You mean the Allspark."

Saori answered quietly, "I do not know his name, but I can feel what he desires. He does not want to see any of you harmed." She walked slowly towards the heap of metal that is Starscream, and a curious expression of sorrow was on her face. She put a small, white hand on the cold metal, and it seemed for a moment tears threatened her eyes. She whispered, "There are so few of you left, and no more children; no one should die. Oh, his pain is so sharp. Aioros! Why did you move to kill?"

Aioros quickly strode forward and knelt down beside her on one knee. "My Lady," He said quietly but firmly, with deference but without even a hint of submission, "I regret taking lives, but there was nothing else I could do. They were determined to fight and I do not know enough about them to attempt to maim rather than kill."

"Aioros!" Saori looked startled, as if suddenly awakening from a strange dream. She wrapped her arms around Aioros's broad shoulders, hugging him with all her might. She spewed out words in a rapid succession with almost a child-like nervousness. "Aioros, I am so sorry! That wasn't me. You did absolutely no wrong, and I should _not_ be making you justify yourself. Please forgive me, but this strange…strange force inside of me, he overcomes my own judgments."

Aioros looked at her worriedly, but before he can press her to speak more about this alien thing invading her mind, she spoke up quietly with imploring eyes, "But Aioros, will you help me repair these two? With Mu too, of course. You fixed Jazz before."

Aiorors murmured a swift "of course", but was interrupted by Jazz. The silver autobot boomed incredulously, "What? Are you guys crazy? Fixing Decepticons, and Starscream too of all bots, bringing them back to life?"

"Why not?"

"Because they are the enemies!" Jazz was practically roaring, metal parts clanking noisily, "You had very good reasons to put him down, because he wanted all of you dead! Given half a chance he will lay this planet to waste. Would you bring him to life just to see him trash your world?"

Saori tilted her head a little, looking up at Jazz quizzically. "Would he really, I mean, so truly bent on the destruction of humankind?" She asked with ample uncertainty, "I heard a little about your war, and I fail to see any strategic purpose in destroying Earth…"

The clanking sounded like Jazz was clenching his jaw. The silver robot said, "Woman, if it weren't for the decepticons hell bent on destroying you all, we would hardly have a reason to stay."

Saori bowed slightly and said, "I apologize, Jazz. I do not doubt your intentions and I do not mean to question your words, it's just that…" She paused, eyes lowered and looking miserable; after what seemed like an eternity, she raised her head again. Her green eyes glittered as she said resolutely, "Long ago I swore on the river Styx that I would no longer interfere with the wars of mankind, for I have no right to dictate fate of civilizations. Such a promise holds for your kind as well, regardless of what power I have. If Starscream died by your hands, I would not interfere with any of it. Yet they died by the hands of my saints, and I would undo it if I could. I cannot be a supreme judge of your war, Jazz, and I cannot take or give life on a whim. In truth, I should not have brought you back, Jazz, but what is done is done. Of course, if any of you proved to be a danger to Earth and its inhabitants, then you can count me an enemy. I vowed to protect mankind from dangers against which they cannot defend themselves, and that vow I will hold, until the end of time."

Jazz's eyes blinked, blue lights turning off, and on, and off, and on again. Finally he clanked out, "You were attacked in broad daylight, and you have a problem believing that Starscream and his cronies are a danger to Earth?"

"I am willing to offer him one chance, though one chance only. Perhaps he will think twice now that he understands the kind of power we hold," Saori said calmly, and already she was turning away, ready to transport the two decepticons' bodies.

Just then they heard the rumbling of engines once more. A few vehicles appeared on the edge of the desert plain and were heading towards them at top speed. Milo instantly dragged Maggie behind him, while Aioros took a small, subtle step forward so he standing in front of Saori, but Jazz laughed. "Relax," He said, "It's friendly forces. High time they arrived too! Honestly, I can't deal with this mess myself; I will refer you all to my commander—Optimus Prime."

Even as Jazz finished the introduction, the large eighteen-wheeler truck at the head of the vehicle train began to transform. In a symphony of rotating gears and clanking parts, the truck easily unrolled into an enormous robot, at least thirty feet high. In a heartbeat he was standing no more than a dozen feet away from Saori. There he paused for a moment, before kneeling down on one knee and reaching out an enormous metal hand.

"Miss Kido, I am Optimus Prime," The truck-turned-robot said in a deep, booming voice, "I have heard much about you, and I think we must discuss these urgent matters immediately and hopefully reach an agreement."

Unlike in her dream, Saori did not hesitate; she strode forward purposefully and replied, "Pleased to meet you, Optimus Prime. Yes, we do have much to discuss."


End file.
